Friday, November 18, 2011

The great ivy league question (this was in all caps but apparently all caps are rude! haha)?

this timeless question has been in the back of my mind for quite some time now. im a junior at an academically strong catholic high school. without getting into specifics im very involved and a very qualified student. im really not that set on going to an ivy given the extreme acceptance rates and intense competition but im just curious to know, from alums or current students, what it takes to gain acceptance. if there are any ivy-leaguers out there . . . how did you get in? any tips for standing out in general with competitve school both ivy league and non?

The great ivy league question (this was in all caps but apparently all caps are rude! haha)?
The first person put the general information. I shall put up my application information to let you see what it takes to get in.





Schools where I was accepted: Columbia, Yale, Stanford, UC Berkeley, UCLA, MIT, Emory, Princeton, NYU, Cornell, Williams, and a few others





Schools that rejected me: Caltech





School I attend: UCLA





GPA: unweighted - 3.99; weighted - 4.25


Test scores: SAT I - 2040; SAT II: US History - 720, Math Level 2 - 650, Literature - 700.





AP classes and test results:


Statistics - 3


Calculus BC - 5


Government - 5


World History - 3


Chemistry - 2


Physics - 3 (For physics and chem, I had horrible teachers, and I didnt have a lot of time for independent study, and this is the best I could pull off)


English Language - 5


English Literature - 5


Micro Econ - 4


Macro Econ - 3





Sports - 3 years varsity baseball. 2 years varsity baseball





Clubs/EC's - Founding President Interact Club, Founding President CSF, Secretary Knights and Ladies, Secretary JSA, Captain of Academic Decathlon, school DJ.





Outside activities - Job for 2 years, community service (550 hours)





General Info: First in family to attend college, Hispanic, male, attended High School at a public school in Los Angeles, Hip-Hop fiend.





I was a pretty well-rounded student, and the fact that I'm a minority REALLY helped me out. My SAT I score was pretty low for some of the schools that I attended, but my leadership positions and work experience really placed me as a top candidate.





If you have any specific questions concerning your chances or just generl questions about me or some colleges, feel free to email me.
Reply:*Is Catholic*





Some tips





1. Apply Early.


2. Get in contact and make a visit with someone in the department of your major. Dont leave the decision to the people in admissions but get some help from actual professors. If you can make a good impression, they can move your application along.


3. Be yourself. Faking anything and puffing yourself up is obvious.


4. Be interested in your field of study. Know what you are about and what you want to do.


5. Just to reunderline -- make personal appearances and don't leave the decision to what you wrote on a page.


6. Get good letters of references. Make sure to get references from people that teach in the field of your major.





The higher your grades and test scores, the easier it is to get in without doing personal appearances (or call on the phone if you are too far).





For example, you could very easily go on line, look up the main undergraduate advisior for the major at your school of choice call them up introduce yourself, and say that you are thinking of going to the school and was wondering if they could tell you a bit about their department. After that you can ask if they would be willing to ask questions. After that see if they might be able to help you with the application. The more you can do that in person the better.
Reply:It usually takes that something extra special to get in - whether an essay that blows the admissions staff away or a special talent (like being an amazing athlete or musician or training mice). Ivy leagues definitely look for stellar grades and high SAT scores, but most people who apply to those schools have both of those (as well as heaps of activities) so those who work at the admissions office usually must make a decision based on a uniqueness factor - meaning what sets one applicant apart from the rest of the applicants.

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